Demand On Who FCTC COP11 To Embrace Consumer Voices Intensifies

Monday, 24 February 2025, 3:47 pm
Press Release: CAPHRA

The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) today demanded the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) end its exclusion of consumer organisations and adopt evidence-based tobacco harm reduction (THR) as a vital public health strategy ahead of its COP11 meeting.

Despite documented success in nations regulating safer nicotine products, such as vapes and heated tobacco, the WHO FCTC continues to marginalise consumer advocates and disregard real-world outcomes. New Zealand’s adult smoking rate, for example, fell to under 6% in 2024 following progressive vaping policies, while Japan’s adoption of heated tobacco products has driven smoking rates to record lows, with peer-reviewed research estimating 12 million preventable health cases averted annually alongside significant healthcare savings.

“The WHO’s refusal to engage with consumer groups—those most directly affected by its policies—undermines global public health,” said Nancy Loucas, CAPHRA Executive Coordinator. “By silencing consumer voices and dismissing safer alternatives, they prioritise ideology over science, costing lives.”

Recent studies validate THR’s potential. Research published in PubMed (2024) found Japan’s shift to heated tobacco could prevent millions of smoking-related illnesses, while Australia’s prohibitionist approach has fuelled a thriving black market for unregulated vaping products, exposing consumers to greater risks.

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CAPHRA calls on COP11 delegates to grant formal observer status to consumer groups, adopt risk-proportionate regulations distinguishing safer products from cigarettes, and subject WHO FCTC policies to United Nations human rights oversight. With 1.1 billion global smokers, the WHO’s current stance risks millions of preventable deaths.

“The WHO must evolve. Consumer advocates are not the enemy—they’re the bridge to pragmatic solutions and essential partners in reducing smoking-related harm,” Loucas stressed. “COP11 must prioritise transparency and science over ideology. Lives hang in the balance.”

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